


Richie Takes the Bait

by royalchttphn



Series: Inktober 2019 Prompts - Reddie [3]
Category: IT (Movies - Muschietti), IT - Stephen King
Genre: Coming Out, Fishing Trip, Good Parents Maggie & Wentworth Tozier, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-03
Updated: 2019-10-03
Packaged: 2020-11-22 21:29:03
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,255
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20880968
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/royalchttphn/pseuds/royalchttphn
Summary: If Went knew anything, he knew this to be true.Inktober 2019 Day 3: Bait





	Richie Takes the Bait

**Author's Note:**

> i kinda hate this one but have it anyway

As a child, Wentworth Tozier had been taken on many a fishing trip with his old man. The two would wake up so early in the morning that Went could still see the stars in the sky, and every time his dad came in to shake him awake he would spend a couple of minutes marvelling at the beauty of it all.

When Went grew up and started a family of his own with now Maggie Tozier, he knew he wanted to keep the fishing trip tradition alive.

The problem was that Richie seemed to be growing out of the trips far quicker than Went himself ever had. In fact, Richie seemed to be pulling away altogether. It concerned and hurt Went that Richie would finish his food at dinner as quick as possible before darting back up to his room or out of the house. Went and Maggie would share worried glances across the table as soon as Richie had vacated the room.

“Richie,” Maggie asked every night, “how was school?”

Every night, Richie responded, “Fine,” finished his food, and left.

*****

The sun was crawling slowly through the sky, for now just a sliver on the horizon, and Went sighed. Sunrise always made the lake glimmer in a special sort of way, and for a moment he saw himself as a child, fascination written across his features as the water sparkled and waved.

Richie, sat beside him, his legs dangling off the dock and bare feet dipping into the water, sighed as well.

That morning when Went had gone to wake Richie up, he was surprised that Richie was already getting ready. It was usually much more of a hassle to get Richie to even move from where he was curled beneath the blankets, but on that particular day Richie seemed different.

Went couldn’t pinpoint what it was at first. Shamefully, he didn’t even care to figure it out for the first couple of hours, simply excited that Richie didn’t fight with him about waking up “at the asscrack of dawn”, as Richie put it many, many times, and going fishing.

But on the drive, Richie didn’t fiddle with the radio station, like he always did.

And on the dock, he didn’t complain about how disgusting it was to spear live bait.

And he didn’t even curl his nose when Went pulled a fish, frantic and gasping for breath, from the water.

If Went had been looking, he would have seen three things written clear as day across Richie’s face: nerves and resignation.

Went only noticed it when he turned to his son, excitedly prattling off about the size of the fish he just caught, and saw him staring blankly out at the water. For some reason, it hit him that his boy, now seventeen, was becoming a man. It also hit him that it was obvious something was up with Richie and that he was stupid for having missed it in the first place.

“What’s goin’ on in that head of yours, Rich?” he grunted, hands working to reel in the fish at the end of his line.

“Nothing much.”

“You say that,” Went said, detaching the hook from the fish’s lip, “but I know that’s not the truth.”

Richie just shrugged.

“Look, son, your mother and I know something is wrong. You barely talk to us anymore. You never tell us how you’re doing or how school is when we ask. You don’t even stay at meals long enough to have a real conversation, always running off to be with those friends of yours--”

“Don’t talk about my friends,” Richie snapped suddenly.

Went paused.

“Is something wrong with your friend group, Rich? Is that what’s wrong?”

“Nothing’s wrong with my friends.”

“Then what _is_ wrong?”

Richie didn’t respond. He was still looking out at the lake. After a few seconds, Richie began to blink rapidly, his chest started to rise and fall a little quicker, and his hands clenched at his sides where they rested on his thighs. Went easily recognized it as Richie trying (and failing) not to cry. Went scrambled for something to say.

Gently, as if he were talking to a frightened animal, Went said, “Richie… clearly something’s upsetting you. Maybe I can help. Maybe I can fix… whatever it is.”

“You can’t!” Richie yelled, his voice echoing over the water. “You can’t because there’s nothing to fix!”

“Then why have you pulled away? Why won’t you talk to us? It’s like living with a complete stranger!”

Richie looked down at his clenched fists. He watched absently as a tear fell onto his thumb.

“I didn’t want to tell you ‘til I was out of Derry. Until you would never have to see me again - never have to tell the neighbors what a fucking disappointment I am.”

“Language, Richie,” Went said out of instinct, but Richie didn’t hear him.

“I didn’t want to say anything because I’ll be fucking gone at the end of this year, far away from you and M-Mom where you’ll never have to speak to me again because I just _know_ you’ll despise me--”

“We could never.” If Went knew anything, he knew this to be true.

“You will once you know I’m gay.”

Well.

There it was.

“You will once you know that I’ve been dating a boy since I was fourteen fucking years old. You will once you know that he and I are moving away once we graduate. You will once you know that we’re quite literally eloping. You will once you know that… that I love him more than anything and that I could never, ever see myself without him.” Richie took a deep breath, still not looking at Went. Despite that, Went could see the determination set in Richie’s shoulders and his jaw and his eyes. “I’ll pack my shit when we get back home.”

“Don’t say that,” Went whispered. “Your mother would be heartbroken.”

“She’d be heartbroken if she knew the truth, and I’d rather not be around the see it.”

“Richie, you seem really hard-set on leaving, and if that’s what you want then… then fine, but I don’t...” and now Went started to cry, “I don’t know what words to use to make you believe that I don’t hate you. I meant it when I said I never could. It was true before you told me, and it’s true now.”

Richie sniffled. “What?”

“God, Rich, you’re my son! On what planet could I not love you?”

Went could practically feel the whiplash Richie got when he whipped his head around to face him.

“And I know your mother is in the same boat as I am. And I’m sure we’ll love your boyfriend when we meet him, whoever he is.”

“When you meet him?” Richie snorted.

“Do you not plan on bringing him home?”

“Dad.” Richie smiled at Went like he was stupid. “You’ve met Eddie a million times.”

Once Richie said it, it seemed like the most obvious thing in the entire universe.

“Of course it’s Eddie,” Went laughed. “You’ve been pulling his metaphorical pigtails since the day you two met.”

“He’s been the only person for me since the day we met.”

Went smiled. “That’s sweet of you, Rich.”

Richie just scrunched his nose.

“You’ll still have to bring him home officially as your boyfriend, you know. Maggie and I are gonna have to make sure he treats you right.” Went winked.

And for the first time in a long time, Went heard Richie's laugh.


End file.
